Dubai’s ‘THINKLIGHT’ conference – a major trend forecaster for the full spectrum lighting industry – is this year expected to identify huge growth opportunities in the region’s smart lighting sector.

The free-to-attend conference, which is integral to the Light Middle East exhibition and networking programme, will examine trends within a sector forecasted to register 25% growth over the next four years.

THINKLIGHT will run at the Dubai World Trade Centre from October 15-17 and see more than 20 local, regional and international experts drill down into prospects for four distinct content tracks: professional lighting design and architecture; lighting applications; IoT and intelligent lighting and integrated building technology.

“The learnings will be both extensive and essential,” said Dishan Issac, Show Director, Light Middle East. “Delegates will hear of the very latest technological developments which are disrupting this highly elastic sector, new regulations, standards and best practices and also take knowledge away from case studies and research findings and join in panel discussions.”

The conference which is this year themed ‘Adapting to change; Charting the course in the era of transformation,’ comes as the Middle East’s smart lighting market is forecast to surge in value to more than US $2 billion by 2030.

Analysis by consultants TECHSCIResearch puts the growth down to energy efficiency drivers, growing adoption of LED, mobile and sensor technology and increasing environmental concerns all tied into the development of smart cities and luxury-oriented homes.

“The opportunities here are immense,” added Isaac. “They will be outlined in detail by our authoritative panel which is drawn from big players in the built environment and across a wide breadth of expertise from architects to systems innovators and utility providers. Given the comprehensive scope of the agenda, the delegate appeal will be broad brush from designers and specifiers, architects to landscapers, manufacturers, planners, developer, consultants as well as suppliers and distributors.”

The 14th Light Middle East is organised messe frankfurt Middle East which has sectioned-out the show into six dedicated segments: decorative lighting and accessories; electrical and electronic components and accessories for lighting systems; electric lamps; LED lighting; technical lighting and accessories and house and building automation.

The show’s 2019 educational programme is also supported by three co-located events: – Light.ication, which, in association with Light.Func, promotes lighting design through education by giving UAE students an exclusive platform to demonstrate their creative vision to a global audience; the third Ready, Steady Light lighting design and installation competition and an expanded edition of the prestigious Light Middle East Awards. The 2019 Awards scheme will see the debut of two new categories – ‘Personality of the Year’ and ‘Distributor of the Year.’

Now in its fourth year, Light.ication will turn its attention to a global audience with a keen focus on female empowerment. Led by Women in Lighting (WIL) ambassador for the UAE and Light.Func Designer Director and Founder, Sakina Dugawalla-Moeller, the initiative will align itself with the country’s key pillars outlined for the ‘Year of Tolerance’.

“The idea behind Women in Lighting is to have individuals like myself who work in lighting who are able, through their involvement to mentor the younger generation to take on more of a decision-making role, a more active role,” said Moeller.

“The idea behind taking Light.ication global with WIL is if there is a studio where there are more males in decision-making roles trying to push the senior mentor to be a female, it will takes them out of their comfort zone and give a real opportunity to step up to the mark and mentor the next generations of designers, architects, interior designers and engineers.”

In order to turn Light.ication into a global experience during Light Middle East, the initiative will host teams from across the world to participate in creating their lighting designs. All designs will be linked to an interactive LED screen displaying the world map on the exhibition floor space. Each instalment will be represented on the map and will feature livestreams, videos and images hosted by the international teams.

“We are inviting teams from all around the world to take part in the initiative, where we have a lighting design studio that can partner with an architecture and interior designs studio that can take on a group of university students and create an installation around a theme,” added Moeller.

Light Middle East 2019 is shaping up to demo-hub for the global industry with 72 lighting manufacturers returning to the show, a steady sign-up by debut exhibitors including big name retailers from 20 countries.